Feed gauge for printing presses



Feb. 27, 1934. Q L s s 1,949,286

FEED GAUGE FOR PRINTING PRESSES Filed Sept. 30, 1933 Imventor CHARLES LSTILES (lttomegS Patented Feb. 27, 1934 UNITED STATES PATENT Application September 30, 1933 Serial No. 691,658

3 Claims.

This invention relates to feed gauges for the platens of printing presses. An early example of such devices is shown in the United States patent to Megill, No. 241,556, issued May 17, 1881.

Such devices commonly include a frame provided with a prong to engage it with the tympan of the platen, and a head member provided with points to enter the tympan, the face of said head serving as one of several stops or gauges for fixing the position of the sheet of paper or other article to be printed.

When a sheet of paper or other article to be printed has been impressed with the inked type form suction or wet ink may tend to hold it against 5 the form, hence means are provided of the nature of a stripper tongue adjustably connected with the prong frame, said tongue to project beyond the gauge face to strip or draw or start the drawing of the printed sheet from the face of the form.

As such stripper tongues should project more or less over the margin of the sheet or article to be printed they are subject to frequent adjustment and bending in order to put them into proper position. Such a tongue, therefore, should have a frictional connection of such character with the prong frame as to permit frequent and nice adjustment without rapid impairment of its usefulness.

It is the principal object of my invention to provide an improved and simplified construction of such devices whereby the said desirable results are obtained. Other objects will appear from the disclosure herein.

The invention is embodied in the example herein shown and described, the features of novelty being pointed out in the claims.

In the accompanying drawing- Figure 1 is a top plan view of my improved gauge on a rather large scale with a small portion broken out to illustrate a detail.

Fig. 2 is a view looking at the lower edge of Fi 1.

Fig. 3 is a view looking at the right hand or head-end of Fig. 2, with the adjustable tongue omitted.

Fig. 4 is a plan view, on a modified scale, of the blank from which the pin frame is formed.

Fig. 5 is a View of a platen and tympan illustrating a set of my gauges applied thereto and a sheet of paper to be printed supported thereby.

The prong frame which is preferably made of sheet spring steel or as customarily done includes a bottom portion extended from the head portion as a prong 10 for securing the frame with a tympan at a point remote from the article to be printed; the head portion 11 provided with a substantially square opening 12 with angled corners at the prong side and with a plurality of pointed feet 13 to enter the tympan and fix the position of the head in sheet engaging position;

a top portion 14 bent down slightly at 14 and extending from the head portion 11 in the same general direction as the prong 10, said plate having parallel edges and provided therebetween with an elongated opening 15 bridged by a cross piece 16 and terminating with a pair of curved pressure fingers 14 the two being of reduced width as regards the width of the top of the plate and standing when in place at opposite sides of to the end of the prong 10. The crosspiece 16 has pressed upward in it an elevated elongated nodule 16 for the purpose hereinafter set forth.

The adjustable tongue, which is preferably made of half hard sheet brass of slight resilience includes a cross head portion 17 with lateral extensions 1'7 bent to embrace and engage the aforesaid parallel edges of the plate but so as to permit the sliding of said cross head on and removal of it from the top of the plate 14. An 30 upstanding finger piece 18 on said head portion is provided whereby the adjustment of the said cross head portion and the tongue thereof can be efiected. 19 designates the said tongue proper, it being of sufficient width and length to permit its insertion and extension through the outer end of the slot 15 and through the opening 12 in the perpendicular face of the head portion.

The nodule 16 on the bridge portion over which the tongue lies is of such height as to cause, when applied, a slight flexion of the tongue proper so as to cause said tongue to bear against the lower side of the top of the metal adjacent the head and also the bent ears at 1'? to bear by upward pressure against the plate. This pressure of the tongue against the metal of the head and the projection 16 on the bridge provides the friction desired to hold the tongue in the place to which adjusted; but such friction is not sufficient to prevent the easy and quick removal 19o of the tongue member when desired and its prompt and easy adjustment for use.

The friction caused, as just described, can be supplemented, if desired, by two longitudinal pressure fingers 20, 20, extending rearward at opposite sides of the finger piece 18, said pressure fingers 20, 20, being bent downward to bear slightly on the upper surface of the top plate of the pin frame.

The prong 10 is so formed so as to extend between the pressure fingers 14 and rest against the rear portion of the plate member 14.

The mode of application of the gauge pins is depicted in Fig. 5 where the character 21 designates the tympan with which the gauges are secured, the tongues 19 being adjusted either before or after the gauges have been applied to the tympan.

The forms of the parts can be changed without departing from the gist of the invention as claimed.

What I claim is:

1. In a feed gauge for printing presses, said gauge including a frame provided at one end with a tympan-engaging prongand at its other end with a perforated gauging head and a rigid upward projection on the frame between said ends, a flexible primarily straight stripper having a cross head portion provided with bent ears slidably engaging said frame, and said stripper having a tongue portion extended through the perforation of said gauging head and said tongue portion flexed by said rigid projection between said gauging head and the frame where engaged by said ears to frictionally hold said tongue in any position to which said stripper is adjusted.

2. In a feed gauge for printing presses, said gauge including a frame provided at one end with a tympan-engaging prong and at its other end with a perforated gauging head, said frame also having a slot between said ends provided with a rigid bridging portion having an upward projection, a flexible stripper member having a tongue portion and a cross head, the latter provided with bent ears slidably engaging said frame with the said tongue extended through the perforation of said gauging head, said tongue portion flexed at and by said upward projection between said gauging head and said bent ears to frictionally hold said tongue in any position to which it is adjusted.

3. In a feed gauge for printing presses, said gauge including a frame provided at one end with a tympan-engaging prong and at its other end with a perforated gauging head, said frame also having a slot between said ends provided with a rigid bridging portion, the latter having a projection struck upward therein, a flexible stripper member having a tongue portion and a cross head, the latter provided with bent ears slidably engaging said frame with the said tongue portion extended through the perforation of said gauging head, said tongue portion flexed at and by said upward projection between said gauging head and said bent ears to frictionally hold said tongue in any position to which it is adjusted.

CHARLES L. STILES. 

